The Premier League hopefuls will aim to put down a marker as the new Championship season begins this weekend.
Foxes open at Coventry, Saints host Leeds in Saturday's live game
The Premier League hopefuls will aim to put down a marker as the new Championship season begins this weekend.
Hull host Blackpool on Friday night is the first competitive game of the English season while
Sky Sports' other televised Championship game of the weekend sees newly-promoted Southampton host Leeds on Saturday evening.
Leicester have been installed as title favourites along with relegated West Ham, while bookmakers are expecting Nottingham Forest to be in contention having reached the play-offs the last two years.
The first game of the new campaign sees
Blackpool visit
Hull, with Pool boss Ian Holloway looking for the Seasiders to bounce back following relegation from the Premier League last term, live on
Sky Sports 1HD.
Sven-Goran Eriksson has been very busy at
Leicester this summer and the former England boss takes his new-look squad to
Coventry in Saturday's lunchtime kick-off.
Brighton promoted
Brighton have also been big spenders since winning the League One title last term and begin life at their new Amex Stadium with a home game against
Doncaster.
Eriksson's national team successor, Steve McClaren, will also be in the Championship this term having returned to England with
Forest. They host
Barnsley in his first game in charge.
Middlesbrough are also expected to be among this season's promotion contenders following a strong finish last term and they host
Portsmouth, who will be keen to make an impression after consolidating last season following relegation from the top flight.
Beaten play-off finalists
Reading will begin their bid to build on last season's near miss by facing
Millwall at the Madejski.
Birmingham saw Alex McLeish leave for arch-rivals Aston Villa following relegation and after appointing Chris Hughton as new boss they will be glad to get back in action away to
Derby after a turbulent summer.
Burnley fell just short of a top-six finish and Eddie Howe's men welcome
Watford, who have new boss Sean Dyche in charge following Malky Mackay's departure for Cardiff.
Big Sam's back
Dave Jones left
Cardiff after again losing in the play-offs, despite a second successive fourth-placed finish, and Sunday's game will see Mackay pit his wits against another new boss with Sam Allardyce having returned to management with
West Ham.
Southampton mark their return to the Championship with a live game on
Sky Sports 2HD at home to
Leeds, who narrowly missed out on last season's play-offs.
Peterborough also came up, via the play-offs, and they return to the second tier with a home game against
Crystal Palace, who had another tough campaign last term, finishing 20th.
Bristol City and
Ipswichboth finished mid-table last term and face each other at Ashton Gate on Saturday.
